I have now completely rewired the underside of the nine baseboards that comprise Die Keinnamebahn. The following tasks have been completed since our recent RF induced system failure at the Bakewell show. All power/DCC buses under the boards have been replaced with 2mm diameter solid copper wire. As many track feeds as possible have been […]
Two weeks to go to my first exhibition of 2019 at Chapel-en-le-Frith on 23/24 February and I am testing Die Keinnamebahn, my H0e exhibition layout. The point at the station throat was not polarising the frog properly and so I changed the Seep PM4 switching latched solenoid point motor. Testing showed it was now OK […]
I needed to make a relatively large expanse of station yard and road on Valdieu-Lutran. I decided that chinchilla dust, a form of powdered clay, would be a good base. I initially tried to stick the dust to the baseboard using diluted PVA but this was unsuccessful because the clay did not stick well. After […]
When laying track on a curve using copper clad sleepers or onto copper clad sheet for embedded track the track needs to be eased in gauge slightly for good running. To do this on Peco Code 80 rail then you need a 3-point track gauge. I have been unable to find a commercially produced 3-point […]
I have been busy working on the embedded track on Valdieu-Lutran station yard. Any of the cobbles that rose above the rail height have been cut down to below rail height and painted with a granite grey paint, with some cobbles having a slightly browner colour. The cobbles have then been coated with Games Workshop […]
It has been a busy day. I now have a name for my new layout. It will be called Valdieu-Lutran. Valdieu-Lutran is a small town in France near the German and Swiss borders and sits on the Canal du Rhone du Rhin, so allowing me a small quayside and, if it is a heritage railway, […]
I came across these boards on eBay. They are listed as “1Pcs Bridge Rectifier IN4007 Ac To Dc Converter Wave Rectifier Circuit Board” at 99p each but the seller was accepting offers so I have managed to order 12 for £9 inclusive of postage. The boards will easily power a few LEDs on each baseboard. […]
On my new layout I am again are using the brass pattern makers’ dowels that align the boards to transfer the DCC power and control signals between the boards. 2mm bare solid copper wire is used to create a power/signal busbar between the dowels. The electrical contact between the male and female pattern maker’s dowels […]
I have now got around to building the ten baseboards required for the continuous circuit version of Die Keinnamebahn using 4 prototype corner versions of the scenic baseboards generously donated by Tim Horn (timhorn.co.uk). Tim has redesigned the basic scenic boards to have 6mm moisture resistant MDF tops and, for the corner boards, the normal […]
I needed a way to join together the new prototype corner scenic baseboards kindly gifted to me by Tim Horn so that the boards are tightly held together and located by pattern makers’ dowels. I decided that using small removable pin hinges would be a suitable and quick method of achieving this aim. Most split […]
At 12ft in length Die Keinnamebahn is too big for assembly in my home and so is only an end-to-end exhibition layout. For that reason I am trying to develop another layout that can be operated at home as well as being an exhibition layout. Using 400mm x 250mm boards developed in conjunction with Tim […]
I had bought two 6ft x 2ft 6in folding tables to display my layouts on at exhibitions. At their first outing it was found that the exhibition floor had a slight gradient to it which meant some stock ran away if uncoupled. I therefore looked at a way to make the steel tube table legs […]
One of the problems with modelling in 009 / H0e / H0m / H0n30 is the lack of remote controlled decoupler systems at affordable prices. For those not wanting to exchange all their couplings for magnetic operated Greenwich etched brass couplings or Microtrains or Kadee couplers the alternatives are either the manual Peco SL-430 uncoupler […]
A new purchase is this Kitwood Hills motorised model turntable. This is the 90mm diameter version, a 65mm being another option. The kit comes with a presoldered 9mm track section which now uses Code 80 rather than the Code 70 currently stated on their website. The kit is complete with switches for both the turntable […]
I recently bought two laser cut MDF scenic baseboard kits from Tim Horn (http://www.timhorn.co.uk/scenic-boards). They are each 400x250mm in size with 50mm sides and made of 3mm MDF and cost me £8.00 each + £4.00 postage. Delivery was quick and the boards were well packed with comprehensive instructions. The finish of the parts was excellent. […]
